Summer Crossroads - DFW Metaplex

without a map, every road looks promising

After claiming the vampires head and sorting out manny, it was time to move on.

Since the master of the house was no longer in need of his ride, we commandered his ride and made our escape, before someone decided to check in on him.

The drive was rather pleasent, give we had no clue where we were going. At this point we still had no clue where we were at, the scenery was what one would expect from a sparsley populated, arid desert. That is, except for the crucified corpses masquerading as cacti.

Sicne our resident Mr. Good Guy had to to check them out we stopped to give them last rights and search for clues to our current whereabouts. One of the Three (dead) Amigos had a Policia Federal badge, at least we finally knew where we were.

We apparently attracted someone’s attention as an ATV was heard driving up. Doing our best “you can’t see me” impression, with some assitance from Anita, we set up an ambush. I finally got the chance to see the latest addition to our motley crew in action. Make sprang upon him with a quickness i couldn’t follow. Pulling some sort of “Jedi Mind Trick”, mike got him to give us his gun and go about his business.
Our car running low on gas, we drove towards the only lights we saw. Figuring the town was owned by the rec court, Mike swaggered into the gas station as Erik Estrada to prepay for fuel. Unbeknowest to the group, a gagn of vampire hunters had moved to wreck shop. They closed in on our little group as we tried to fuel up. Some words were exchanged, some magic and bullets as well. In hindsight, we might have approached the situation more diplomatically, but since were were in unfamiliar environs, anything that moved was a potential threat.
We managed a clean get away and gave our persuers a slip, but apparenlty a lucky shot managed to wing our gas tank. We were running on fumes when we made it back to town surreptitiously. Busy hotwiring our next ride, i was powerless to do anything as our persuers came back to town. Not that we had to do anything, as they were yet unaware of our presence.

That is untill they started beating on an innocent bystander, and Mustang had to get involved.

A wave of my hand and the lackies were as good as dealt with, but their ring leader was something else entirely. Something with a capital “S”. He brushed our attack aside as if we gnats, while i frantically attempted to get our next borrowed vehicle started.
After another brief skirmish, and with a little help from a map “Mr. Estrada” snagged, we managed to get finally locate a boarder crossing. I went across first, as i was the only one with the means to do so. Everyone else followed under a cloak of invisiblity. All was smooth sailing till some overzealous drug dog caught wiff of our resiident vampire. A little bit of juking and jiving, mike gave them the slip and we finally started on our long road home from Nuevo Laredo.

We need bigger guns!

Having the choice between babysitting a half vamp or follow the rest of the gang to some sort of meeting to find out more about what’s been going down, i decided to take my chances with the meeting. Of course i didnt factor in the mighty guardian Po and his desk.

The place seemed relatively normal from the outside, but i guess being who we are we got to use the VIP entrance, through the never with a pixie guardian named Po. I’m not sure what simon or mustang said to him, but he steamed. He was also rather insistant that i leave my stuff behind with him for safe keeping or promise not to use them, neither of which is an option. Using a classic from the grifter playbook, i managed to get past him with all my toys intact.

We’d just gotten back from the Gardens, and settled down to rest for a bit. Viveca and Anita decided they needed a mental health day at the spa, and I’d just started practicing some magic, when the phone rang, they asked for a name that I hadn’t heard in a while. It was someone in the military, at a local VA hospital. For some reason, there was a patient in who had my name and phone number with them. With that the only contact info they had, they really wanted me to come see if I could help the guy. He was having…problems.

Of course, I went to help. It’s just a visit to the hospital, why would I need backup, right? When I got there, the doctors and staff were very, very glad to see me. They explained that physically, he was fine, but he’d had some problems readjusting to life. Things had even been bad enough that he was restrained, and a guard was posted at the door.

Session 14

It’s always interesting when a plan comes together. One thing that there’s no denying, with a little shaping, the mayhem potential of this group is quickly approaching legendary. We’re going to need a round table if this keeps up.

There was a fight with an ogre thing who took our statue. While the researchers were whipping up a tracking spell, we did a quick pickup into a ghost pocket of the Nevernever, and a delivery with a bit of damage to Anita‘s car, and a toothy demon thing that tried to get fresh with me. Beyond that, well, I don’t know if it was 30 minutes or less, but we completed the task.

From there, we went back to get Marion and her tracking spell. Piling back into the cars, the crystal led us across town toward the Fort Worth Arboretum, and the Japanese Gardens there. We made amazingly good time, maybe due to the brief detours through the Nevernever to avoid traffic. Along the way, we got more research information about the ogre, and ways to make him weaker.

Session 12

So I get dragged back in to helping this group of misfits. Considering my current circumstances, not like much else to do. Supposedly trying to stop some magical cataclysm so off we go to the Tramell Crowe collection to find some oriental statue. Thankfully, there is a Starbucks on the corner to redeem the day. After some debate, in we go to find this statue and save the day, hooray, would have been OK if I could have finished my mocha soy latte.

With some dumb luck, the guy wearing the trench coat is able to get the lock open so we can all go down to the basement. After some aimless wandering, we find George at his desk. After more time waste on our part, he leaves and we search the office. With no distractions, I took charge of the situation and hacked into George’s computer. Making quick work of his password, I let everyone else know their statue is now upstairs somewhere.

Session 11

They could have fled. They are cowardly assasins. They chose to fight and, well, mostly die. With the gunfire directed our way, the one named Mustang has seen reason and begins shooting. A grazing shot to the shoulder, a bullet somewhere in my left arm – there’s really no time to worry about these things. I serve two masters – the Yakuza and the Dragon Kuzryu. Both are demanding and a broken body is hardly excuse to fail in my duties.

The ambassador is pissing his pants in the corner. Typical. We grab him and leave the whore in his room, screaming on nobody’s dime. We have more questions but this is hardly the place to do it.

I hear sirens, alarms raging in the hall. The elevator is a bit obvious so we go to the stairs. Not far before we hit something, different. The air has a cold feel to it. The half-fey calls it supernatural. I’m inclined to agree with her. She has been holding us under some sort of faerie magic veil so we can’t be seen, or so she says. I have little way of knowing and know her well enough not to trust her.

Session 10

I am not very good with names. English names especially. There is no poetry or meaning to them. John, Frank, Bob. They roll off the tongue like water and dribble to the ground. Japanese names have strength, conviction, the presence of mountains.

Plus, if the boss needs me to visit someone, there will not be anymore social calls.

So, when I say we went to “some guys” house, it means I could care less what his name was. I wanted to know who had the audacity to use my boss’ social event for their gain.

We arrived at the tech guru’s mansion late. An ambulance was out front along with a police cruiser. The half fey, Anita, did the right thing and kept on driving. As we passed, I saw figures skirting the darkness of the side yard, headed ot the back.

We circled the block and as the car rolled to a stop I was out the door, bounding over the back neighbor’s privacy fence and on through into the target’s yard. I spotted a lookout, rather he spotted me. No matter.

Getting the plant is supposed to be the adventure. Licking of wounds and a gentle trip home would have been nice. Of course, nice seems to be out of town, spending the winter somewhere warm and decidedly not Siberia.

The team decided to avoid further conflict and take the plant home, several people intending to come back to finish off the tentacle tree monster, and either separately or as a result of that, restore the spiritual connection back to the locals. We just need to learn some more things, get stronger, and maybe bring a howitzer or at least some C4.

Only thing is, we couldn’t really decide if it was safe to take the plant through the Nevernever. If one powerful entity there was looking for it, several others might be as well, if for no other reason than to spite or make the first owe them. So, overland travel it was.

Session 8

Shaman Ruskov

Early, the sun is just a muted glow in a familiar sky. It has been many years since I’ve been back to the Tree. Many years. Under all of the snow, the browning grass, the leafless shrubs, there is life, always life, even here. It struggles gainst the bitter, numbing, cold. It struggles beneath a constant crust of snow. But it is always there, always there except for where they want to go.

I pack my gear, taking just what I’ll need and pulling on the reindeer skin boots I’ve worn since the day I was bonded with Misha. She’s already up and around camp, probably hunting. She knows there’s a journey soon, she can sense it. A similar journey is what brought us together and now a group of outsiders wishes to undertake their own quest.

The first rule of Faery club is Never Make a Deal with a %@*^# Faery!
Even when you think you have the upperhand, and especially when you don’t.

After finally getting the Tlatoani monkey off our back, or Mustangand Bastion in what i can only hope was a fit of insanity, Anita agreed to an open ended contract with this Dian Cecht character from the Never Never.

Now in exchange for his Dr. McCoy act on Bastion , we’re stuck playing Daniel Boone to some forsaken wastelend in the Never Never on the other side of the world. On top of that, someone get’s to babysit his pet; Simon Harverd